NCAA.com | October 3, 2013

DIII WXC PREVIEW

Top-ranked, defending champion Johns Hopkins, which finished eighth among 13 Division I squads at Boston College last weekend behind former National Athlete of the Week Hannah Oneda’s 21st-place finish, headlines the Division III involvement, joined by No. 6 Williams and No. 10 St. Lawrence for the Paul Short Run on Saturday.

IDLE TEAMS

No. 2 Wartburg

No. 3 Middlebury

No. 4 MIT

No. 7 Chicago

48 total teams are expected for the Gold race.

Williams will be looking to rebound after narrowly finishing third at its home Purple Valley Classic last weekend behind now-No. 3 Middlebury and No. 4 MIT.

The Blue Jays will fight to finish as the fastest team from the state of Maryland, going up against local rivals Loyola, Maryland and Navy (pending its attendance due to the government shutdown).

St. Lawrence had a week off of competition after winning a team title at the Saratoga Cross Country Invitational.

No. 5 Claremont-M-S at Pomona Pitzer Invite and Pre-Nationals

Pomona-Pitzer pleased to host the fifth annual Pomona-Pitzer Cross Country Invite on Saturday. The race will be held on the Pomona College campus course through the Wash, and will feature teams from NCAA Division III, Division I, and NAIA levels.

No. 5 Claremont-M-S will run in the event against a field including Cal Lutheran, La Verne and Pomona Pitzer.

A portion of the team will be at Hanover College running in the Pre-National event on Saturday.

Claremont-Mudd Scripps-College and ninth-ranked Trinity University (Texas), are two teams that will be participating.

No. 8 Calvin at Notre Dame Invitational

There will be an intense match-up in the Gold Race of the Notre Dame Invitational with No. 8 Calvin of Division III taking on GLIAC rival No. 16 Hillsdale.

Calvin won a team title at the MIAA Jamboree hosted by Adrian last Saturday.

No. 9 Trinity (Texas) at Alamo City Duals and Pre-Nationals

Ninth-ranked Trinity (Texas) rested and is ready for some serious competition this weekend.

One portion of the team will compete at Trinity in the Alamo City Duals, and the rest will be at Hanover for the Pre-National race.

How the DI college cross country championship works

Here's a complete guide to the NCAA DI women's and men's college cross country championships, including how teams make the field and a history of champions.